Opinions on the Star Trek movies and TV series.

Star Trek is my all-time favorite entertainment franchise, more so even than Mega Man. On the surface, there are cool spaceships and strange aliens and futuristic gadgets and everything I love about science-fiction. But what sets Star Trek apart from other sci-fi, and what makes the franchise so compelling, is that the sci-fi elements are merely a vehicle for relatable stories about everyday human struggles. It's a show about the characters, and the characters are a reflection of us. Star Trek raises questions about ethics, morality, faith, politics, class, race, gender, friendship, love, life, death, and so much more—the whole of the human condition. It shows us a vision of the future that's hopeful, reminding us that people can overcome their differences and work together to accomplish anything. On top of all that, there are some great lines and some awesome explosions.

Star Trek comes in six (technically, seven) flavors of television series, with a combined total of ten feature films following from two of the series. Star Trek also inspired a 2009 movie called The Incredible Voyages of Five Young Space Cadets, which was mislabeled as Star Trek and has since spawned two sequels. And that's to say nothing of the novels, comics, video games, fan productions, and even simulator rides that expand the Star Trek universe.

So much could be said about the history, development, science, and societal impact of Star Trek, but I'll leave that to historians and journalists and scientists. The opinions you're about to read are focused on story, characters, continuity—the opinions of a creative writer who watches a lot of sci-fi. No arbitrary rating scales here; just short essays on some of my favorite movies and TV shows (and some I'm obligated to acknowledge by association).